


Taking It Slow

by perpetual_procrastinator



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Equestrian, F/F, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-18
Updated: 2016-09-14
Packaged: 2018-08-09 14:10:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7804825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perpetual_procrastinator/pseuds/perpetual_procrastinator
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When 18 year old Clarke Griffin arrives to train at Grounder Show Stables she finds herself simultaneously drawn to and infuriated by working student Lexa Woods, a 20 year old rising star in the show jumping world. Despite a rocky start, and countless ups and downs, over the next 8 years the girls come to mean more to each other than they could have ever imagined.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Whole New World

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first ever fic, constructive criticism welcome! :)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And so it begins...

Clarke leaned her head against the window and closed her eyes. Taxis never failed to make her carsick. She was barely twenty minutes away from the airport and was already questioning every choice she had made leading up to this point. Especially rejecting her mom's offer to come with her to help her move in. She had a  **lot**  of stuff, and her arms were already sore from lugging copious amounts of luggage through LAX. 

Her mom.

Clarke wondered if she would be expecting a call or a text to let her know that she had arrived safely. Probably. That's what moms are supposed to want.

 

_"I_   _hope you know what you're doing Clarke._   _You could have gone to Berkeley."_

_"I know, mom." Her eyes remained fixed on the floor, the disappointment in her mother's voice cutting through her._

_Abby placed her hands authoritatively on the countertop, "Remember our deal. One year-"_

_"I know." Clarke cut her off firmly, anger coloring her words. "You're only doing this for dad. Even though dad would have never given me a stupid arbitrary time limit."_

_"Clarke-" Abby slumped, her power stance losing some of its edge._

_"Seriously save it, I know you don't think I'm good enough."_

_"It's an expensive sport Clarke. Since your father...I don't have enough money to keep supporting you on my own. It has nothing to do with believing in you."_

_But he always believed in me, and he showed it. Which is more than I can say about you. Clarke bit back her retort and felt tears begin to prick her eyes as she stood abruptly, "I'm going to finish packing."_

 

The blonde wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and exhaled sharply. She knew her mom was trying her best, they just couldn't seem to do anything but clash in the wake of her dad's death. He had really been the glue that held them together. 

Raven and Octavia had really stepped up after the accident, being her friends, sisters, and therapy dogs through everything. Despite Clarke throwing herself onto the first boy who showed an interest...even though that boy had been Raven's all too recent ex. They had both seemed to hold on tighter with every questionable choice Clarke made. Determined not to abandon her to the mess that had become her life.

 

_"We're really going to miss you Clarke," Octavia said, staring sadly at the plush wolf in her lap._

_"Ya, if you don't FaceTime us at least once a week we will_ not _be happy. I expect stalker pics of all the hot stable boys." Raven added, trying her best to not let the mood fall too far. It was their last night together before they all went their separate ways and she was determined to make it a good one._

_"I'm sure you guys will have way more excitement in your lives than I will," Clarke replied, stubbornly ignoring Raven's attempts at levity. "Don't forget about me now that you're going on your big college adventure."_

_Octavia sighed, "Clarke, stop being ridiculous. We've been friends for so long. It doesn't matter how many new friends I make you guys are going to be the first people I text when I wake up in some dingy frathouse with no memory of what was undoubtedly a stellar night."_

_"Don't let Bellamy hear you say that," Raven laughed._

_Octavia rolled her eyes, "Oh please, he was the boy_ living  _in the dingy frathouse."_

_"It wasn't_ that  _dingy." Raven muttered under her breath._

_"Raven, gross. We said we'd never talk about it." Octavia visibly shuddered at the reminder that Raven had spent the night in said house, doing a lot of things that didn't involve sleep, on their college tour a few months before._

_Raven took a large swig of her root beer and cleared her throat, "Anyway...if you miss Finn, text us and not him!"_

_Now it was Clarke's turn to roll her eyes, "He was a tool Raven. I won't be missing him."_

_"But he loved you," The Latina threw a handful of popcorn into her mouth a little too aggressively._

_"That doesn't excuse his douchebaggery." Octavia said, crossing to the beanbag in the centre of the room and picking up the Xbox controller._

_"Douchebaggery?" Raven snorted, "What have you been reading?"_

_The brunette shrugged, "What's good on Netflix that we haven't watched yet?"_

The taxi turned down a long road, a pristine wrought iron sign looming above them read: Grounders Show Stables. She felt the awful lurch of anxiety hit her stomach. She wasn't good enough for this, why had she thought this was a good idea?? She should have listened to her mom and gone to Berkeley. Biology was indescribably boring but at least she wouldn't have humiliated herself. The taxi slowed to a stop and she met the drivers eyes in the rearview mirror. Was it too late to tell him to turn around and take her back home? She pictured the smug look that would no doubt grace her mother's face if she gave up so soon and her mouth set in a hard line.

She gathered her things and opened the door, almost immediately dropping everything onto the concrete driveway. _Perfect._

"Hi, are you Clarke?" Clarke jumped in surprise and looked up into the most brilliant green eyes she had ever seen. Holy. Shit.

She recognized the brunette immediately, everyone in the show jumping world knew her name. She was the youngest person to ever make the U.S. Olympic Show Jumping team and while the two years following her record breaking success had been unassuming, she remained a legend. Especially to Clarke. 

"Umm Clarke?" 

The blonde realized that she had been quiet for a few seconds longer than was socially acceptable. "Yes, Clarke! I'm Clarke, sorry I dropped all my stuff, I was just a little distracted. Sorry. Hi."

If Clarke had an inner cartoon like Lizzy McGuire she would be screaming in horror.

The brunette just gave the flustered teen a kind smile and dropped down next to her, grabbing an overstuffed North Face. "Don't worry about it, I can't believe you got all of this here on your own in the first place."

"I don't really know how I did it either," Clarke said standing. The other girl turned to head towards the house before abruptly stopping and turning back to face Clarke.

"I'm Lexa by the way, I just realized I didn't even introduce myself."

"That's ok," Clarke smiled,  _I already knew._

Clarke couldn't shake the giddy feeling bubbling up inside her as she followed Lexa into the main house. Maybe this would all go according to plan after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment and let me know what you think/if you like it so far!


	2. Or Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Clarke feels sorry for herself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I've had exams, ugh.

"Ok Clarke, let's try to ride this one clear and then we're done for the day." Indra called from the side of the arena.

"Yes because that's not what I've been trying to do the past three times." Clarke muttered under her breath. 

She didn't understand it. Milo VI had been by far the best horse she'd tried out when she first arrived but she'd racked up two refusals and five downed poles in this session alone. Aside from one or two good days the past two weeks had been much of the same. She just couldn't connect with him.

"He can sense your energy you know." Lexa offered nonchalantly from her perch on Aries, her perfectly compliant dutch warmblood. 

Clarke fought the urge to roll her eyes. She was beginning to realize why "never meet your heroes" was a saying. 

"I know that, Lexa," She spat. "Just because I'm not as good as you doesn't mean I don't know horses." 

"I'm just trying to help, Clarke" The unique way her name rolled off her tongue occasionally had the effect of bringing unbidden butterflies to Clarke's stomach. Usually after a glass of wine or two. Today was not one of those days.

The brunettes unflinchingly calm demeanor was infuriating. As were her mesmerizing green eyes....c _ouldn't there be just one thing about her that wasn't perfect?_

Clarke blinked hard, trying to ignore her intrusive thoughts. "I don't need your help, and I didn't ask for it. Indra is my coach, not you. Now let me get on with it. I'm starving."  _Ok Milo. Let's show her._

Incredibly enough, anger seemed to be just what she needed to push through her block. She flew over the fences, allowing herself to flow with Milo's gait. She tensed momentarily as she approached the combination, which he had refused to jump earlier in the day, but this time when she asked he acquiesced, effortlessly clearing all three. 

 _YES!_ She fought the urge to shout triumphantly as she trotted back towards the front of the arena. But her momentarily good mood dissipated as she saw Lexa looking rather smug as she began to walk Aries back to the stables.  _Oh hell no, she is not giving herself credit for that. It wasn't even good advice!_

The blonde dismounted, fully intending to give Lexa a piece of her mind, before Indra called out to her. "Clarke, wait."

She groaned inwardly. All she wanted to do was grab some of Nyko's leftover chili from "family dinner" and sit in bed to finish reading her sappy romance novel and cry about her life.

She turned to face her coach. "Look, I know you've been finding it difficult here. A new horse, a new coach, new everything. But it's only been a few weeks." Clarke opened her mouth to reply, but when her eyes met Indra's her mouth snapped shut. She clearly wasn't finished. "I invited you here to train because I saw something in you."

Clarke focused on tracing circles against Milo's soft shoulder, anything to distract her from the tears she felt building behind her eyes. "I don't know what. I've never even competed in a national championship. When you spotted me that was only my first A rated show." 

"I know, and you placed 10th."

"Hardly impressive."

Indra, sighed. "It was your _first A rated show_. Not to mention the fact that you've had less than half of the high level training that most your age have already had. Clarke, I know that things haven't been easy for you this past year. And I know that leaving everything to come here had to have been difficult too." The woman was being uncharacteristically soft. "But you need to fix your attitude. Coming into the arena everyday you look like you've already decided that you're going to fail. And if you think that you've lost before you even begin you'll never succeed."

Clarke nodded mutely. "You don't need to stay here. But if you do, and you change your attitude, you will be a grand prix rider. I've taken a chance on you, don't make me regret it." Ah, there was the Indra she had come to know. 

Clarke remained stationary in the arena for a few moments as Indra walked away. Indra had seen something in her, despite her lack of experience, despite her mediocre place at that show, Indra had approached her and invited her to train. 

She remembered the joy on her father's face when she had told him about it in the car afterwards. 

 

_"Clarke, that's amazing! See, all your hard work is paying off."_

_"But Indra lives on the other side of the country dad, and mom isn't going to like it. What if she says no?" She picked at her fingernails, brow furrowed._

_"You'll be 18 by then, you'll have graduated from high school. It doesn't matter what your mother or I think, you make the choices you feel are right for you."_

_"But what if mom is right, what if this isn't a 'feasible career choice'?" she mimicked her mothers logical tone. "There are so many people who are so much better than me."_

_Jake pulled over to the side of the road. "Um, dad? I don't think this is safe..."_

_He turned and looked Clarke straight in the eyes, "Clarke, no matter what you choose there will always be someone who is better than you. Whether you go to Berkeley or you pursue this. But I believe in you. You're so talented Clarke, you don't see yourself when you ride. And I know how much you love it. If you want to go for it, you go for it." He_ _grabbed her hand and held it across the cup holders. "Now, I don't know about you but I could really go for some In N Out right about now."_

 

Clarke exhaled and rested her head against Milo's neck. "I haven't been very good to you have I?" He turned his head towards her as if in response and she chuckled, "Well I'm going to try really hard to change that. Indra believes in me, Dad believed in me, now I just have to believe in me."

She brushed her fingers across his nose. _No In N Out for either of us, but I guess chili and hay will do._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone likes how it's going so far, keep commenting and kudos-ing it's so motivating! :)


	3. Fate or Disaster?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa get a push in the right direction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I edited and reposted this chapter because I thought it was weak, sorry!!

The sun beat down on Clarke's head and for a moment she was glad that she wasn't competing. It was blisteringly hot, the late August heat compounded by a heatwave that had descended on Normandy, and if the temperature rose any higher Clarke was sure she would become a puddle on the stadium floor.

It was her first time at the World Equestrian Games and she was determined to make the most of it, but found herself idly wondering if she would be able to slip away and find some air conditioning after Lexa competed. Making the most of it didn't mean allowing herself to succumb to heatstroke. 

Just as she was beginning to consider slipping away before Lexa competed her phone buzzed loudly, and she fished it quickly out of her pocket hoping for a distraction from her discomfort.

Rae: So how's the city of looooove?

Clarke rolled her eyes and smiled at the multitude of heart eye emojis that followed Raven's message. Ever since she had let slip how gorgeous she thought Lexa was during a Skype call Octavia and Raven wouldn't let it go.

Clarke: I'm not in Paris, Raven 

Rae: ...work with me Griffin. 

Lexa's name blared over the speakers and Clarke slipped her phone back into her pocket. Raven could wait. 

 

The blonde leaned forward expectantly, hands clasped under her chin and elbows on her knees, feeling her stomach flip as Lexa entered the arena with her characteristic air of grace. Sure, Lexa was gorgeous, but she was also an amazing rider. The butterflies that had been entering her stomach with increasing regularity whenever Lexa was around were due to admiration, that's all. They have nothing to do with the adorable look she gets on her face when concentrates. Or the way the way her pants accentuate her-Ding ding.

The bell signaling the start of Lexa's round broke through Clarke's train of thought and she swallowed hard. Now was not the time to be having inappropriate thoughts about her training partner. 

She turned her full focus to the course, exhaling slightly every time Lexa cleared a jump. The older girl was well within time, and if she managed three more clear she would easily have a shot at a medal.

Coming into the second to last jump however, Clarke could see that the brunette was off. She clenched her hands together even tighter, willing Lexa to fix it quickly. But in less than a second, everything fell apart. 

Her distance to the jump was completely off and Aries crashed into the obstacle with a resounding bang, sending Lexa flying over his neck and onto the ground. Clarke winced and felt a pang of disappointment for the olympian. There was no way she would medal now.

A few seconds passed and Clarke's brows furrowed. Something was wrong. Lexa was still on the ground, and she hadn't moved. 

Clarke placed a hand on the seat in front of her, perched as if ready to sprint, the knot in her stomach growing with every second Lexa remained motionless. 

She vaguely registered Nyko speaking from his seat next to her but couldn't respond, the medical team had clearly also noticed the severity of the fall and were running into the arena. 

A memory came unbidden to Clarke's mind. The death of a girl after an accident at a show plastered across the front pages of every newspaper. She hadn't even been there, but her mother hadn't stopped trying to convince her to give up riding for weeks afterwards.

 

Lexa will be fine, Lexa is fine.

 

The controlled chaos of leaving the stadium, finding a taxi, and following the ambulance to the hospital passed in a blur with Clarke feeling as near to pure panic as she ever had. She suddenly felt as if the month and a half she had spent living and training with Lexa had been completely wasted. Lexa had offered something of an olive branch the week before, inviting Clarke along on a hack, but she had been tired after a hard day, and just wanted to sleep. She had assured Lexa of a rain check, now what if the chance for that rain check never came?

 

Two hours later Clarke and the rest of the team still sat in silent tension, clutching cups of bad hospital coffee. Clarke couldn't help but wonder how many people had sat on these worn seats throughout the years, hoping and praying for a miracle only to receive the worst possible news.

She had to choke back a morbid laugh. Well, I got my air conditioning. She would rather have been boiling in the sun. 

 

At around 5pm Indra finally entered the room. 

"She's ok," She said, motioning for everyone to remain seated. "She has a bad concussion, but she's conscious." Clarke visibly relaxed, all that worrying and drama had been for nothing!

Indra paused uncomfortably for a moment and Clarke's heart sank, "Unfortunately it looks like she's torn her ACL. She'll have to stay in the hospital for observation and get an MRI in the morning."

Just like that the tension returned. A torn ACL was every athletes nightmare. What if Lexa could never ride again?

As they dejectedly filed out of the hospital and began the journey back to their hotel, Clarke firmly resolved that whatever came of the injury, Lexa wouldn't have to go through it alone. She would be there for her any way she could. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any typos, I was desperate to get this one done! Exams are finally over so I'll be posting at least a chapter a week from now on


	4. Silver Linings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa start again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally getting into the development of their friendship! Sorry for the delay again, I've been burning to death in Italy.

Clarke's resolve to be there for Lexa was tested three times before she even made it into Lexa's hospital room on Sunday afternoon.

 

The first time was when she spent thirty minutes throwing clothes around the room trying to pick something to wear. They shared an apartment for Christ's sake. She had been sprawled on the couch watching reality TV as Lexa had gone in and out of the apartment in whirls of productivity more times than she could count.

Yet here she was, trying on outfit after outfit and vetoing each one for a different minuscule defect.

It was as if the trauma of the day before had unleashed a new level of infatuation that had previously been confined to staring too long at her legs while she cooked in the kitchen, or at her full lips when they pursed in concentration before training. 

Her dismal moods and subsequent laser focus after Indra's speech to her had overshadowed the pull she'd felt from the second blue eyes met green outside of the taxi. Fearing for Lexa's safety had removed all of those distractions and made her realise how much she actually wanted to get to know the girl that she felt so drawn to. 

 

After finally settling on cute-yet-casual, she encountered her next gut check. This time while standing in line at the coffee shop around the corner from the hospital.

Foreign languages were not Clarke's strong suit, and while the coffee names weren't too difficult to decipher, she felt a rising anxiety that she would accidentally buy something Lexa hated.

She had been woken nearly every morning for the past two months by the din produced when Lexa frothed her milk, and her passive aggressive questioning a week into her stay meant that she knew Lexa only ever made herself flat whites. The only logical conclusion would be to get Lexa what she made herself. Anxiety, however, does not typically listen to logic.

She finally reached the counter and was spared more self doubt as a young Frenchman stared at her expectantly.

"Umm…flat…blanche?"

Thankfully the barista was used to serving Americans who were hopelessly inept at speaking French, and Clarke managed to walk out with ten minutes later with Lexa's strong brew and her own sickly sweet soy chai tea latte in hand.

 

The third and final opportunity to back out came as she stood outside the door of Lexa's hospital room. Despite the fact that the two had shared a living space for so long, they had shared surprisingly little conversation. When Clarke was in her room, Lexa was in the kitchen. While Lexa was out working, Clarke was in the living room.

The only thing Clarke knew for sure that they had in common was a love of horses, but she was confident enough in her conversational skills to not anticipate a catastrophic crash and burn. She took a deep breath and knocked.

 

"Come in,"

A blonde head poked cautiously around the door. "Hey Lexa," 

"Hey," 

"How are you?" She stepped cautiously into the room and Lexa held back a smile at the normally boisterous girl's almost timid expression. 

"Ok. I just feel a little...fuzzy." Clarke's heart ached at how small Lexa looked in the hospital bed, still hooked up to machines and dressed in a plain gown.

"Are you allowed coffee? I know how bad the stuff in the hospital is." 

Lexa nodded and rewarded Clarke with a half smile. 

The moment of truth. "Flat white?" She proffered the warm cup.

There was a full smile now, "This is perfect, thank you Clarke." 

_Why did she have to say her name that way?_  It was completely butterfly inducing. 

After a few silent sips Lexa cleared her throat, "What are you drinking?" 

"Chai tea latte," Lexa raised an eyebrow, "you want to try it?"

Clarke held out her cup and Lexa reached out to take it, "Sure." 

She tentatively brought it to her lips and took a sip, her face immediately scrunching up in disgust as the cloyingly sweet liquid touched her tongue. "How do you drink that?!" 

Clarke couldn't hold back her laughter as she shrugged, "Well I snuck a sip of yours and it's actually kind of disgusting."

 

Their eyes met as their laughter died down and Clarke saw a look in the other girls eyes that she had never seen before. A mixture of surprise and affection plain, as if she hadn't expected to feel this comfortable alone with the blonde. They broke eye contact almost shyly as the silence settled around them.

 "You can sit down if you want," Lexa offered gesturing towards the foot of her bed.

Clarke stared for a moment at the brunette's leg, hesitating before glancing instead towards a chair near the window.

"I hurt my knee, Clarke, its not an alien."

"I know, it's just-I don't want to hurt it!" She ran a hand through her hair.

"You won't. I hate it when people sit in that chair, it makes me feel like I'm on my death bed or something."

Clarke smiled sympathetically, not quite knowing what to say, and gingerly touched the sheets to confirm that Lexa's leg was out of the way before sitting down. 

"So, how are you feeling?" 

"Fine, just fuzzy..." Lexa said, obviously confused as to why Clarke was asking her a question she already knew the answer to. 

"No, I meant about the accident. Not physically." 

"Oh," Lexa glanced at the sheets before meeting Clarke's eyes. "Ok, I mean, not amazing." 

"Ya, of course. Sorry that was a stupid question." 

"Don't worry. I'm going to have to get used to questions like that."

Clarke cringed inwardly, why had she brought that up? The other girl definitely needed no reminding.

"Well at least it's not like you really _need_  any more prize money right? Let someone else fill up their bank account for a change." 

Her attempt at levity backfired spectacularly.

Lexa's demeanor immediately changed. Her muscles tensed as she responded, her voice carefully measured and eyes firey, "Seeing as your parents seem to pay for your every expense I don't think you're really in a place to know whether or not I _need_ that prize money." 

"I-I didn't mean," Her mouth opened and closed uselessly for a few moments as she frantically tried to find a way back from her faux pas. 

Lexa sighed, "You know, I'm still pretty out of it from the concussion. I should rest."

Clarke nodded and scrambled off of the bed at lightning speed. "Ya, ok." 

She picked up her bag, "Feel better soon." 

Her heart sank as she reached for the door. That hadn't gone as she had hoped it would.

She glanced back and was met with what was quickly becoming her favorite shade of green.  
"Thanks for the coffee."  
"You're welcome."

 

Two heads dropped into their hands as soon as the door clicked shut. _It had been going so well._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed it! As always comments give me life, and if any of you want to follow me on tumblr I'm 28foxhounds. Send me any feedback/prompts/conversation starters that you have! I don't bite :)


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